Vehicles need a suspension system in order to keep the wheels in contact with the surface over which the vehicle is being driven, and to insulate the vehicle body from at least some of the undulations in that surface. The former requirement is necessary in order to ensure the safe and effective handling of the vehicle, and the latter is necessary in order to provide the necessary level of ride comfort. Generally, these two requirements act in opposite directions, and a suspension system is therefore a compromise between the two. A range of suspension systems are known.
The MacPherson strut suspension, often used for the front suspension, comprises a wishbone or a substantial compression link stabilized by a secondary link, which provides a bottom mounting point for a wheel hub or axle. This lower arm system provides both lateral and longitudinal location of the wheel. The upper part of the hub is rigidly fixed to the inner part of a sprung and damped strut, which extends upwards directly to a mounting in the body shell of the vehicle.
Double wishbone suspension locates the wheel through the use of two (upper and lower) arms, each in the shape of an “A” or a wishbone. Each arm has two mounting points on the chassis and one joint at the knuckle. A shock absorber and coil spring are mounted to the wishbones to control vertical movement. Double wishbone designs allow the engineer to carefully control the motion of the wheel throughout suspension travel, controlling such parameters as camber angle, caster angle, toe pattern, roll center height, scrub radius, scuff and more.
A multi-link suspension uses three or more lateral arms, together with one or more longitudinal arms, to define and constrain the movement of the wheel hub. These arms do not have to be of equal length, and may be angled away from their ‘obvious’ direction. Typically each arm has a spherical joint (ball joint) or rubber bushing at each end, and therefore react loads along their own length, in tension and compression, but not in bending. Some multi-links also use a trailing arm or wishbone, which has two bushings at one end.
All have relative advantages and disadvantages, typically reflecting a variation in the level of ride comfort or handling that is achievable against the cost and complexity of the system.